THE AUSTRALIAN DEFENCE FORCE RECEIVES ITS FIRST MRH90

18 December 2007

NHIndustries is proud to announce that the Commonwealth of Australia took delivery of its first two MRH90 Multi Role helicopters.

These helicopters which have been officially delivered today by Australian Aerospace to the Defence Materiel Organization (DMO) have been assembled in Marignane (France) by Eurocopter and delivered last month to Australian Aerospace (Brisbane). They will be followed by a second batch of two MRH90 assembled in France while the remaining 42 helicopters purchased by Australia will be produced and delivered by Australian Aerospace in the Brisbane facility.

“This delivery on time of the first batch of two MRH 90 is another great achievement in this programme and the result of a flawless cooperation between the Australian Authorities and Industry, this last party encompassing Australian Aerospace, NHIndustries and its Partner Companies to provide the Australian Defence Forces with the most advanced helicopter of its generation” declared Mrs Gala Gonçalves the NHIndustries General Manager.

The MRH 90 is the Australian variant of the NH90 helicopter intended to modernize the Australian Defence Force (ADF). This new generation helicopter of 10 Ton class will provide multi-role troop lift capability in all environments by day and night. The MRH90 is capable of carrying 2 pilots, 20 fully equipped combat troops up to 900 km at speeds of up to 300 km/h. Its flexibility allows its users to perform additional missions such as internal/external load transport, Heliborne operations, Search and Rescue, Casualties evacuation and Training missions.

The NH90 is the most modern helicopter of its class. It features a high level of system integration, full glass cockpit with Multifunction Displays, Fly-by-Wire controls with 4-axis Automatic Flight Control. Its composite fuselage meets the most stringent crash-worthiness standards. The MRH90 helicopter has provision for a number of role equipment to enable mission flexibility and effectiveness coupled with a high level of safety and survivability.

The twin-engine, medium-size NH90 helicopter program is managed by the consortium NHIndustries, the Company owned by AgustaWestland (32%), Eurocopter (62.5%), and Stork Fokker (5.5%).
The NH90 helicopter programme is the largest ever launched in Europe, with firm orders now reaching 507 units for 19 Armed Forces of 14 Nations: France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Portugal, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Greece, Oman, Australia, New-Zealand, Spain and Belgium.